Pet groomers descended on a convention centre in East Rutherford, New Jersey, this week to take part in an “extreme pet grooming” competition.

Established in 1981, Intergroom is the largest pet grooming conference in the world and draws thousands of people. The highlight of the three-day conference, which wrapped up Monday, is the grooming competition, with prizes given out for the best dog and cat… creations.

As you can see from the video, things get out of hand very quickly. Cindy Oliver, owner of a poodle named Paisley, spent over 20 hours to give her pet a Wild West look.

The cat contest, started in 2010, is known as the Feline Fantasy. The 2014 “winner” was a Siamese rescue cat made to look like an old woman’s tea towel.

How they convince cats to subject themselves to such humiliation is anyone’s guess.